Heroes

A German Shepherd named Noah sacrificed his own life by putting himself in harm’s way after a senseless gunfire attack following a road rage incident in Atlanta, Georgia. See a report on the incident that includes surveillance footage of Noah after being shot and read what his heartbroken owner had to say in a post to Facebook.

A 39-year-old Texas man was hospitalized after he came to the defense of a group of women who were being catcalled on the streets of Philadelphia. Find out what happened including what the southern gentleman said in defense of the women and what a Philadelphia police captain had to say about the incident.

Veteran New York State Trooper John Vescio is being called a hero after he saved an elderly driver from certain death after a vehicle slammed into a gas pump earlier this month. See the frightening footage as John’s training kicked in and he rescues a blacked out driver and procures his own handgun and first aid kit before everything became engulfed in flames.

One of the things the internet has taught me is that people of all ages fall out of buildings at a much more alarming rate than I had ever considered. There’s a ton of videos of folks caching other folks but this recent footage from China might be the most incredible to date.

University of Alabama swimmer John Servati is being remembered as a true southern gentleman who sacrificed his life to save his girlfriend. He was killed during Monday night’s tornado in Tuscaloosa, but managed to protect his girlfriend — who escaped uninjured.

Former Navy SEAL Christopher Heben of Medina, Ohio was shot in the abdomen after a verbal argument with occupants of a car who nearly backed into him outside of a grocery store. What happened next is a story of pure SEAL grit!

When the Make-A-Wish foundation asked 13-year-old Jayci Glover what she wanted, her unselfish reply was just another example of a person with a beautiful spirit and an understanding far beyond her years. She didn’t ask to meet anyone famous or to be taken to some exotic destination but instead she asked that the organization purchase a new scoreboard for her high school’s gymnasium. Do yourself a favor and get to know Jayci as she sets an inspiring example of how to live a life that others can aspire to.

Darnell “Big Country” Barton has been driving a Metro bus in the Buffalo, New York area for 3 years now and he’s seen and met all kinds of people. But it was a recent run-in with an unnamed lady who was teetering over the edge of a bridge on the Scajaquada Expressway, and the surveillance video that has since been released of the interaction, that will be one he’ll never forget and has people rightfully calling Mr. Barton a hero. See the video and get Darnell’s humble explanation as to why he felt he was there at that time and place and why he did what he did.

Two Texas teenagers proved that the often overwhelming hormones at that age aren’t all bad as their natural instincts to notice an “attractive” female led to the discovery that the unnamed woman was being kidnapped. Read on for the story of two unlikely heroes doing the right thing.

John Franklin Riggs and sister Contessa L. Riggs faced a do or die situation when their boat capsized Tuesday during a storm off the coast of Deal Island, Maryland. They, along with their 70-year-old father, Contessa’s 9-year-old niece and 3-year-old son, had been treading water for over an hour and they knew no other boats would be coming. As the sun set they agreed that John would make a desperate attempt to swim to shore…

Read the incredible story of Jessilyn Eisman, a feisty Iowa teenager who crawled from crash wreckage to demand the drunk driver hand over his keys.

To steal, and slightly alter, a line from a classic country song, a husband and father who is known to us all as simply “Mr. Houston” is the reason God made Oklahoma. When a burglar tried to rob his home, Mr. Houston hogtied the man and then his actions afterwords have him now ranked as my favorite all-time viral internet story hero.

“Leave no man behind” is one of the creeds that a U.S. Marine lives by. This dedication to their fellow-man shown greatly when young Daran Wankum gave up on his dream of becoming a member of the elite fighting force after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Find out how he was protected during his surgery and the honor he was bestowed, which has only been given to 22 others in history.

In a story of remarkable restraint and resolve, an armed Tampa area man who had suffered racial slurs and being shot at with a pellet gun refused to return fire. See video of the incident and find out more about the victim Cameron Mohammed. The image seen is the mug shot for his assailant.

One of my favorite year-end lists is the CNN Hero project that highlights many people doing extraordinary things that I may not have otherwise known about. This was certainly the case for Catalina Escobar of Cartagena, Colombia. Escobar was volunteering her time at a local hospital in the town of Cartagena when a 12-day-old boy died in her arms. This was heartbreaking enough, but when she discovered his passing could have been prevented with a mere $30 she had in her pocket it was a situation she found untenable. This, combined with the tragic loss of her own son, led her to action and over the last decade she’s been credited with having saved over 2,000 babies. See her moving tribute video and find out how she’s doing much more as she looks to address the cycle of poverty for the teenage mothers for whom she cares about so passionately.